is 5'7 and 130 pounds unhealthy?

lclarkjr

If my "target" range is between 122 and 164 lbs and I'm a 5' 8" male, I don't think 130 for a 5' 7" female could be unhealthy. It falls within my range even! Now I personally don't like BMI as a health and fitness tool, but it is widely used.

HomestarRunner

I think that is perfect. That is what I am aiming for as well. I am 5'7'' also trying to lose the 40 pounds I gained during pregnancy. I felt healthiest at that weight. I am curvy-but not busty. So I do get smaller up top when I get down to that weight. Leave it to nursing to give you huge knockers!

mimiosborn

I'm 5'7 and 130 pounds which puts me at a size 5 or 6 (a 4 if I'm lucky!) for bottoms and a medium for tops. It's definitely not unhealthy but I wouldn't go much less than that. I recently lost over 30 pounds and my doctor said that I'm in a very good place, but it all depends on where you carry your weight, As long as your happy that's all that should matter. Don't worry so much about what the scale says, it's just a number. It doesn't define you

christiearnold87

Don't worry about weight.. Worry about FAT! Are you 130 lbs of muscle or 130 lbs of fat?! That's what matters.
Just keep doing what your doing to reach your goal and when your happy with your shape , just maintain it????
GoodLuck on your journey !

_lyndseybrooke_

What makes you think it would be unhealthy?

I don't think it is unhealthily thin, but 130 is the ideal weight for someone 5'5" with a small build, so it makes sense it's going to be on the thin side for someone 2 inches taller.

Wrong. The ideal weight for someone that is 5'5" and average build is 125 lbs. For women, it's 100 lbs for the first 5 feet and 5 lbs for every additional inch. Of course, this means nothing if you're muscular, have a large or small frame, etc. It's just calculation for reference. The ideal weight for someone like the OP that is 5'7" is 135 lbs. So 130 lbs would not be underweight.

Iwishyouwell

Don't worry about weight.. Worry about FAT! Are you 130 lbs of muscle or 130 lbs of fat?! That's what matters.
Just keep doing what your doing to reach your goal and when your happy with your shape , just maintain it????
GoodLuck on your journey !

The OP of this thread has a ticker that says "0 lbs lost" and hasn't posted on this board in almost a year and a half.

popsicklestar

No. I'm 5'7'' and 130 pounds. I'm not unhealthy. I have muscle and a healthy BMI and bodyfat percentage.

aedreana

Back in the day, in the 1960s when fashion models were a minimum of 5' 7" instead of the 5' 9" minimum they are today, a reader wrote to Glamour magazine saying they were 5' 7" and 125 lbs. and how could they gain weight because they were too thin.

Glamour replied, "Actually, the average fashion model your height weighs about ten pounds less than you do."

If you don't want to be model-thin (I don't; my ideal weight is 112 at 5' 3 1/2"), 130 lbs. is an excellent estimate for your goal weight. You certainly won't be fat at 5' 7" and 130. A goal weight is something subject to reassessment as you approach goal; you can fine-tune your goal as you draw closer to it. I determined my ideal weight by experimenting with weights both lower and higher. You may find your ideal weight is indeed 130, or less, or more.

Zombielicious

I'm 5'7" and I look and feel my best around 135-145. I'm also curvy (well, busty anyway).

I've been lighter and I start to look a little tired if I get under 130. I also found it hard to stay that low without very consistent and extensive workouts, while 135-145 is pretty easy and comfortable to maintain and has me in a size 4-6.

Same here, except I'm 5'6". I feel best between 135-140. Anything less than that and I start to look kind of sickly.

neandermagnon

Check your BMI (Body Mass Index) and that will let you know what range your weight should be for your height.

No it won't. The BMI range is too big. It's a range that encompasses the whole population. Some people should be in the high end of the range, others in the middle, and others at the low end. Someone who should be in the low end of the BMI range will likely be carrying too much fat if they're in the high end of the range... someone who should be in the high end of the range will likely suffer from problems due to undereating/being underweight if they try to diet down into the low end of the range. And a few people will fall in the underweight or overweight categories at a healthy body fat percentage... for male strength athletes (and maybe even the very occasional female strength athlete) it's possible to be in the obese range and still have a healthy body fat percentage.

There are some adjusted BMI ranges for frame size that are better, as in they give a smaller range that's applicable to people of your height and frame size - but there's no reliable way to measure frame size unless you're already fairly lean (the wrist test is very unreliable)

Body fat percentage is the best way, as long as it's measured using a reasonably accurate method, as you can use this to calculate your lean mass, and also how much you'd weigh at your ideal body fat percentage. Leigh Peele's blog has a lot of information about this, including pictures for visual estimates. If you combine 2-3 ways of measuring body fat percentage and back them up with visual estimates, you can get a reasonably reliable idea of what your body fat percentage is and how much fat you need to lose.

Waist size and hip to waist ratio are good for determining if you're carrying too much body fat or not, although they're just health markers and won't tell you what waist size you'll look best at.

MinMin97

I'm 5'7" also, medium-boned, and have a curvy figure, and have been that light before....it was too light.
140lbs is fine if I'm not that muscular, 145 or more If I'm starting to develop some physique, and have a proper bodyfat.
I'm currently 155 and would like to get to 150 as a muscular person.

QueenBishOTUniverse

I'm another vote for "maybe?" Some people at 5'7" 130lbs will be perfectly healthy, some will be too thin. Yes, the BMI range says that weight might be fine, but it really should be combined with an estimate of your body fat %.

As a visual, in my avatar the picture on the left is 196lbs, the picture on the right is 164lbs, so a 32lb difference. At 164lbs and 5'8" according to BMI I am right on the border between healthy weight and overweight. The low end of the scale for a woman my height is 124lbs, so *theoretically* according to BMI I could lose another 40lbs and still be a health weight for my height.

I'm sorry, but I don't really see where that 40lbs would come from, so I'll stay in the upper 150's, lower 160's thank you very much! :laugh:

LumberJacck

Keep in mind, I heard this method was a way to calculate "minimum healthy weight" meaning a "don't go below this number" type of thing. You can be a little above this and be perfectly in the healthy RANGE, this is just the low end of that range.

Also, for MEN, it is 106 lbs for the first 5' and 6 lbs each additional inch to calculate the minimum healthy weight.

That figure is way off for men, incidentally. That would imply that a 6ft 0in man would have to weigh 178lb. I weigh less than that now and have a flabby stomach and thighs and man boobs.

jlapey

I wouldn't focus too much on a number. Just take care of yourself: exercise regularly and eat properly. You may find that your 'goals' have changed the closer you get to what you think your ideal is anyway.

abbymgonzo

I am 5'9 and I currently weigh about 153. My goal weight is 140... Back when I weighed 130, people would always ask my mom if I was doing alright, or eating enough. I think at 5'7" 135 would be fine for you.

anna_88

We have exactly the same goal- I'm 5 foot 7 (technically and a half) and I'm also aiming for 130, although I will see how I look and feel at 133. As other people have said, it's going to be more about how my body looks than the number on the scale so I think as long as you're flexible to adjusting it accordingly, it's good to have something to aim for!

212ackley

"googled it".... Not sure about the "missing" weights..:laugh:


What's the best way to determine a healthy weight? You can look at your height and weight in the chart

Height Weight
Normal Overweight Obese
4' 10" 91 to 115 lbs. 119 to 138 lbs. 143 to 186 lbs.
4' 11" 94 to 119 lbs. 124 to 143 lbs. 148 to 193 lbs.
5' 97 to 123 lbs. 128 to 148 lbs. 153 to 199 lbs.
5' 1" 100 to 127 lbs. 132 to 153 lbs. 158 to 206 lbs.
5' 2" 104 to 131 lbs. 136 to 158 lbs. 164 to 213 lbs.
5' 3" 107 to 135 lbs. 141 to 163 lbs. 169 to 220 lbs.
5' 4" 110 to 140 lbs. 145 to 169 lbs. 174 to 227 lbs.
5' 5" 114 to 144 lbs. 150 to 174 lbs. 180 to 234 lbs.
5' 6" 118 to 148 lbs. 155 to 179 lbs. 186 to 241 lbs.
5' 7" 121 to 153 lbs. 159 to 185 lbs. 191 to 249 lbs.
5' 8" 125 to 158 lbs. 164 to 190 lbs. 197 to 256 lbs.
5' 9" 128 to 162 lbs. 169 to 196 lbs. 203 to 263 lbs.
5' 10" 132 to 167 lbs. 174 to 202 lbs. 209 to 271 lbs.
5' 11" 136 to 172 lbs. 179 to 208 lbs. 215 to 279 lbs.
6' 140 to 177 lbs. 184 to 213 lbs. 221 to 287 lbs.
6' 1" 144 to 182 lbs. 189 to 219 lbs. 227 to 295 lbs.
6' 2" 148 to 186 lbs. 194 to 225 lbs. 233 to 303 lbs.
6' 3" 152 to 192 lbs. 200 to 232 lbs. 240 to 311 lbs.
6' 4" 156 to 197 lbs. 205 to 238 lbs. 246 to 320 lbs.